Citigroup Cuts Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) Price Target to $28.00

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) had its price target decreased by Citigroup from $29.00 to $28.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. Citigroup currently has a neutral rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on MRO. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Marathon Oil from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Mizuho boosted their target price on Marathon Oil from $33.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Wednesday, June 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a neutral rating and issued a $33.00 target price on shares of Marathon Oil in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on Marathon Oil from $34.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Marathon Oil in a research report on Wednesday. They set a buy rating on the stock. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Marathon Oil currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $32.03.

Marathon Oil Price Performance

MRO opened at $26.72 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The company has a market cap of $15.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.04 and a beta of 2.16. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $27.99 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $27.39. Marathon Oil has a 12-month low of $21.81 and a 12-month high of $30.06.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.69 by ($0.06). Marathon Oil had a return on equity of 13.81% and a net margin of 22.12%. The business had revenue of $1.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.69 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.48 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Marathon Oil will post 2.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Oil Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 21st will be given a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.65%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 21st. Marathon Oil’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.18%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MRO. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado lifted its stake in shares of Marathon Oil by 374.5% in the 4th quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 73,592 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,778,000 after purchasing an additional 58,081 shares during the period. Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Marathon Oil by 137.1% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 304,331 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $7,353,000 after buying an additional 175,964 shares during the last quarter. Blackstone Inc. raised its position in Marathon Oil by 23.1% in the fourth quarter. Blackstone Inc. now owns 79,901 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,930,000 after acquiring an additional 15,000 shares during the period. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Marathon Oil during the 4th quarter worth $5,051,000. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Marathon Oil during the 4th quarter valued at $6,837,000. 77.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Marathon Oil Company Profile

Marathon Oil Corporation, an independent exploration and production company, engages in exploration, production, and marketing of crude oil and condensate, natural gas liquids, and natural gas in the United States and internationally. The company also produces and markets products manufactured from natural gas, such as liquefied natural gas and methanol.